@viposen wrote:
I am 60 yrs old and the primary caregiver for my 88 year old mother. We live together in a 55+ community, which I enjoy very much. I've made friends and have people locally that I can call on for rides, etc. if necessary.
I've recently realized I can't leave her for extended periods of time alone anymore. Her mobility is limited and since a bout of shingles she is very weak. I'm in the process of making a claim via her long term care plan, which she has paid into for close to 20 years. Once I receive approval I want to get some part time care so that I can participate once again in my life's activities.
My question is about finding assistance. The Long Term Care plan says that in order to get composated, I need to have the caregiver under supervison, but it doesn't necessarily need to be a service. Who can I contact about finding someone who would be appropriate? I am hoping to find someone who is flexiable and might be able to cover overnight once or twice a year for me. And who is responsible for the supervision?
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Hi there,
I think the best path is to call the Long Term Care plan directly and ask your questions. Beats me what they mean by supervision: is it an RN who does a first assessment and then keeps track of the caregiver? That's how Medicare-reimbursed skilled home care starts. I used to be a geriatric care manager, and one client received 3 hours twice a week, which didn't seem like a lot to me, but then she was pretty independent and your mother sounds like she needs a fair bit of help, and someone to be with her if she falls or feels unwell suddenly.
I looked around in the aarp.org site and found articles about whether or not to BUY long term care insurance, but nothing on how to use it well if you DO have it already. Maybe i missed something. Perhaps your mother's plan has an online explanation that can help you focus your questions once you get on the phone with the plan. Of course, their job is to give her as little as possible, and after 20 years of her dutifully paying in, it's time to get something out of the plan, for sure.
I'm so glad to hear that you both enjoy living there, and you have a full and rich life. What might be best path forward is to find out what the LTC plan covers, and then supplement that, with her funds not yours, savings, whatever, to pay for overnight respite care or more extended care. She might enjoy having a couple of different caregivers/aides to get to know. And you'll have more than one person to rely on.
I hope other folks will chime in. If you can, please let us know what you learned from the plan and your own experience, as we are all enriched by sharing our adventures in caregiving.
Thanks for writing, and all the best!
Jane